The unrest is a result of government plans to reduce the number of “deprived” areas that receive agricultural subsidies by about 100, which farmers claim would reduce their income by as much as €7,000/year (£6,148/year).

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Producers in the Occitanie region feel they will be among the worst affected if the government slashes their support payments.

“These are territories which are shutting down, which are going to become deserted, villages that are going to die. This is more like civil war than a protest,” said union representative Sophie Maniago in an interview with website thelocal.fr.

If the proposals are voted in on 15 February, a new plan could go ahead as early as the spring.

This is the second time French farmers in the region have protested against these proposals. The French press reported farmers were setting fire to tyres, palets and hay as well as grilling sausages on the motorway, leaving the roadways around Toulouse in chaos.